Hey guys, I have been browsing the net for lenses for a long time and I came across these two cheap (compared to canon ) lenses :

Tokina AT-X840 AF D 80-400mm
Vivitar 650-1300MM F/8

Have anyone used these lenses? Any of these? Are they good? Some people said these lenses produce mediocre images, but I have got no idea bout it.
Are they worth buying? They have got no image stabilizing tools, but I think using them on a mono-pod would solve the problem. So what do you think?

With regard to the Tokina, have a look at my review.
And a monopod is certainly not enough for shooting at 1300mm F/16 The latter is also manual focus afaik, try this at f/16 and with the shake. You'll never get anything usable unless you have a pretty stable tripod plus a good body for ISO 1600 and upwards.

Thanks for the review. The tokina is quite nice for the price, but unfortunately it is too soft at the 400mm end. Guess I'll try using it with my 550D first then decide whether it suits me or not. Again, thanks for your wonderful review and images of the tokina.

Yep - I've seen the same lens advertised here under opteka and its actually f8-16. Also the thing is huge and you would have to spend another 2-300 on a tripod sturdy enough to hold it. You would have better luck with the tamron but for the best results go for the sigma and you also get OS.